Ragnar Relay race report, part 3

Continued from part 2.

I was really wishing I had volunteered for that long 8+ mile run. I was feeling great after that last 8 miler, and wanted to go again. As it was, I was running a 3.3 mile run, and another speedy guy was taking the long one. We cheered him on and headed to the next exchange where I would take my final run. There we waited, and waited. We waited a surprisingly long time, but he eventually made it (not feeling as good as he would have liked), and I took off. I was hoping to do this run really fast, like 5k race pace, but after about a mile, the previous 13 miles and only 30 minutes of sleep in the 30-something hours started to catch up to me. I still managed a pretty good pace, but was unable to go as fast as I wanted. I happened to see a guy that I recognized from other races I have done, and knew that he was faster than me. However, he clearly didn't feel very well, and slowed to a walk. A little over two miles, I hit an intersection where I had to wait at the stop light to cross (twice), and lost a lot of time. The guy was able to catch up to me while waiting, and got me a little worried because he looked like he was doing much better. I really didn't want to let him beat me. On the green, I took off at the fastest pace I thought I could hold, but I could still hear him behind me. With about a half mile to go, I continued to pick up the pace and had a strong finish, but was completely exhausted. Though, still with a smile on my face.

It was fun to chat with the runners from van #1 and cheer on the rest of our team. Once our final runner started, we headed for the finish to meet the rest of the team. When we were almost there, three of us got out to jog back and meet our runner and run in with her. She really appreciated us meeting her. We ended up running an additional 2 miles. Just before the finish, we met the rest of our team and crossed the finish line together. What an experience that was! The 12 of us in our bright yellow shirts into the arms of our families.

The whole event was incredible. I ended up running 19.41 miles over the weekend. What could be better than hanging out in a van for two days with a bunch of other runners? I can't wait to do it again! My buddy wants me to come up to Utah to do the Wasatch Back Ragnar this month, but unfortunately that is not likely to happen. I'll just have to wait until next year's Del Sol.

New Year's Day 5k Race Report

This race is quickly becoming a tradition for New Year's Day. Each year that we have lived in Arizona, my wife's sister and family have come to visit us after Christmas. My brother-in-law, who is an excellent runner, and I have done this race two years in a row now. It's great to have an opportunity to run with him when he comes (even though it's hard to keep up). On one of our runs, we were talking about our goals for this race. He was hoping to run under 18. I have been hoping to run under 19 for months now, but have so far been very unsuccessful. And with the December I had (nearly 2 weeks off with some strange rib pain, and a few more days off with a cold), I really wasn't expecting much at all. But, I love running races, so I was excited for it anyway.

I got a new watch for Christmas into which I can program my target times for each mile, so, with encouragement from my brother-in-law, I programmed splits for a 19-minute 5k, mostly just to test out the function, but also thinking how cool it would be to really run those times.

The course is pretty flat except for a minor hill going out of the park near the start, and where the trail goes under a road at about the 1 mile mark (you hit this hill in the other direction at about mile 2 since it's an out and back course). Leaving the park, I was in 4th place, just a short distance behind my brother-in-law. A short while later, I was joined by 3 gentlemen with whom I stayed with until the turn around. At this point, they all took off. I didn't let them get too far ahead of me, but based on my experience last year, I thought I'd be able to catch them before the finish. There was no one very close behind me, but I did see a large group of runners approaching after I had turned around. This group was lead by several young guys, who looked like they might be pretty quick. This struck a little fear in me, because I really didn't want to get passed by anyone else.

There weren't any mile markers beside mile 1 (where I was 12 seconds ahead of my target time, by the way), so wasn't sure how I was doing on time. I was just trying to get to the finish line as fast as I could. As I entered the park, I could see my brother-in-law making the final turn to the finish, and the 3 guys who passed my not too far behind him. When I hit that turn, I could see the clock, and saw that it was still well under 19 minutes. I had no idea I was going so fast (with this target time setting, I wasn't able to see the total time for the race). I crossed the line at 18:46, only 12 seconds slower than my PR. Unbelievable! I was exhausted, but already thinking about when I'd be able to fit in the next 5k.

I ended up finishing 7th overall, and a little surprised to be 2nd in my age group. Turns out that the much older looking guy with the big, bushy beard who won the race was also in my age group. Bummer. My bro-in-law finished 3rd, and 1st in his age group. Go us!

After the race, we went over to the "Hole in the Rock," and played a bit. We all had a lot of fun.

Laveen Turkey Trot race report

I know this is a little late, but what can you expect from a guy who has only posted twice in like the last three months. The tardiness is worsened when I mention that this race took place the Saturday before Thanksgiving, not the week of!

I had been looking forward to this race all year long. I volunteered to help out at the race last year because my knee was acting up. Had I ran, I would have won by about 4 minutes. So, I was really looking forward to this race not anticipating this year's field to be much more competitive. Plus, my top runner from the high school time I coached this fall (we'll call him Pedro, who made huge gains over the season) was running, and I wanted to see if I could still beat him.

The course consisted of a lap around the high school, then over to the park and around the lake (which, by the way is one of my favorite places to run), and then back to the school. I knew starting out that the course was going to be long because we were starting on the track about 150 meters from where the map showed the start, and ending about 50 meters after the marked finish. The map indicated the course was 3.11, so we were adding about another 1/10th of a mile. Oh well, not a big deal. I always like getting more for my money.

Pedro and I took off in the lead, and stayed there for the first mile, with another high school kid right on our heals. At the one mile mark, this kid passed us and quickly took off. I didn't think he'd be able to hold it, so I let him go. Not long after that, Pedro dropped off, and I was alone. Running around the lake was so quiet. There were a few people fishing, but not much else going on, and the distance between me and Pedro was increasing. I reached the 2 mile mark at 13 minutes, which was right where I wanted to be. I was hoping I'd be able to start making up some ground on 1st place, but he was too far ahead. I finished in 2nd place, about 30 seconds behind 1st. Pedro crossed about 20 seconds later.

I ended up getting a medal for placing first in my age group (30-54). When they called me up, I disappointed another runner who happened to have the same first name as me, and actually looks over 30. He obviously thought I was as young as I look. Sorry, Reed.

Laveen Fun Run 5k Race Report

Last Saturday, was the first annual Laveen Fun Run put on by The Runner's Store. The event was held at the Bougainvillea Golf Club, and it was a beautiful morning for a run. I was excited to get a couple of my cross country kids to come out and run it as well. They were excited to be there too (although I think they were most excited about all the freebies). The course started out in the parking lot and headed out to a dirt road that ran alongside the golf course. After the first mile, which seemed very long, we entered the golf course, ran along a few fairways, and then followed cart paths to the finish.

After a quick start, I settled into 3rd place and watched the top two guys quickly vanish from sight. I knew there were several high school kids right behind me (unfortunately, they weren't my high school kids--they'll get there though!), but I managed to stay ahead of them for the next 1.9 miles. After making my way through the fairways, and heading down the path, I started wondering when this thing was going to end. It kept going and going. I finally rounded a corner and could see the parking lot off in the distance. It was then that one of those high school kids caught me. I thought it was a little early to start my kick, so I just stayed with him. Then, to my frustration, I saw that the finish was not where we started, but much sooner. And there wasn't enough space to catch him again. Fourth place overall aint bad though. I knew I'd still be getting an age group award. Turns out that the top 2 guys were both in my age group, so I still got third. (Age groups were kind of odd. I was in the 24-30 age group rather than they typical 30-34. I probably would have been 1st had it been the typical division. Oh well.

After the race, awards were given, and a Garmin was even raffled off. I ran into some friends who confirmed my suspicions with their Garmin that the course was quite long. I later mapped it out online and found it to be closer to 3.25 rather than 3.1. Knowing that, my 19:40 wasn't so disappointing. Had it been 3.1, I likely would have finished in about 18:40, not to mention a third place overall finish.

Oh, funny/random side note: My insurance provider was one of the chief sponsors for the race, and my agent was there with a booth. I don't know if he really knows who I am, but I did chat with him for a few minutes afterward. Well, yesterday, in the mail I got a card from him saying "Congratulations on your run this past weekend! I've been bragging about you all week to other clients!" Weird. But kinda cool. That was thoughtful of him. Too bad he wasn't pleased enough to lower my rates!

Wrightsock Review #1

This last week, I've had the opportunity to run in my new Wrightsocks. I've only tried out 2 pairs on one run each so far, so this post is only my first impressions, so my opinions could possibly change over the course of the month.

On Wednesday, I had scheduled some mile repeats. Four by 1 mile repeats with the goal of 6 minutes each. I knew this was going to be a tough, fast workout, so I wanted some fast socks to help me get through it. I thought the SLRs fit the bill. These socks were oh so comfy when I slipped them on. I really liked how they snugly hugged my feet. Because they are pretty thin, I kind of felt like my feet were sliding around in my shoes on my warm up. Not too bad though. One thing I did notice, however, was how wet my feet felt. I really don't think they did a better job at keeping my feet dry than my C9s. Later that night though, I noticed on the package the recommendation to wash before wearing, and thought maybe that had something to do with it. I'll give these another try with a clean slate now that I've washed them.

By the way, in case you were interested, the workout was killer. I was able to keep the first 2 miles under 6 minutes. Just missed the third one by a couple seconds, and the last one was agonizingly slow (at least compared to the first two. Overall, a great run though.

I had planned to test out the Coolmesh on my easy run on Thursday, but I woke up to lightning and a downpour. I would have loved to have run in the rain, but decided against it when I saw the lightning. Hopefully I'll get to run in them this week.

Saturday I wore the DLXs on my long run. I ran 8 miles, and didn't notice the socks at all. These did a much better job at keeping my feet dry than the SLRs did. I was a little worried about the double layer. I know about their anti-blister technology, but when I first tried them on (prior to washing), the inner layer was all creased under the toes, which made me wonder how they would hold up on a run. I must say that I was very pleased with how they did. They were comfortable, supportive, and an excellent choice for my long run.

I still have four more pairs to try out. I'm not sure which ones I'll wear this week, but more reviews are still to come.

And here's a sweet picture of Phoenix at sunrise from South Mountain at the start of my run on Saturday morning.

My boy's first run (and mile attempt #1?)

I took my boy out for a run for the very first time this morning. Well, technically, it wasn't his first run, but first with me, and first in the stroller. I think he had a pretty good time after we got going. After a couple minutes, he started crying, but I think it may have been because he didn't know what was going on. He's probably not used to going fast or being alone in the stroller, and didn't know where I was. But after I came around to the side where he could see me and I started talking to him more, he calmed down, and we had a nice run together. You can see how much he enjoyed it by looking at the picture. :-)

I've recently been thinking a lot about my 5 minute mile quest from last year, and how fun it was. Now that I'm getting over my knee and hamstring issues, I'd kinda like to do it again. So, as we were running, I figured I oughta just go for it and see what I can do with the stroller. I was able to run a 5:58. I kept a pretty even pace throughout the entire mile, but it felt like I was running with a parachute. There wasn't much wind, but what there was was blowing in my face and filling the stroller. I'd like to see what I can do without the stroller.

So, I may be spending some more time at the track this summer. I'd really like to run under 5 again, but I think I'm gonna focus more on 2 miles and the 5k. I've said before that I'd like to run 2 in less than 11 minutes, and a 5k under 17. We'll see what happens. I've still got to be careful so that I don't aggravate that knee again. Stay tuned...

Hello, friends!

Time sure flies, doesn't it?! I can't believe it's been a month since my last post. It's been a busy month. Here's what I've been up to:

• Life with 3 kids is pretty busy. Our baby boy had a pretty scary infection a few weeks ago, but after a trip to the doc and some powerful ointment, he's as good as new. And, man, is he getting big! He eats a lot, sleeps ok, and is so stinkin' cute. I'm definitely a proud pop.
• I had my follow up visit with the doc about my blood pressure last week. I had been monitoring it all month long, and was very pleased to see that most of my readings were in the normal range. I was really excited to see a few under 120. I thought I was doing a pretty good job managing my stress. Then, the day of my appointment came, and of course, I had to have a stressful day at work. When he checked me, I was 180/90. "Great!" I thought, "Meds, here I come." I pulled out my chart with all my readings, and he was a little relieved to see the normal readings. Relieved enough to not prescribe anything yet. He wants me to come back in 6 months and see how it is. So, that was good news. But, he also said that even if I can get it under control in the near future, I will probably need to be on meds within the next 10 years, and stay on those meds for the rest of my life. At the end of the check-up, he checked me again, and it was down to 140/70. So, it was a positive visit, but not as positive as I was hoping.
• I have a new favorite BP friendly breakfast. It's really tasty, and each ingredient is supposed to help with lowering blood pressure. I cook some oatmeal, throw in a handful of almonds, sunflower seeds, frozen berries, bananas, dark chocolate, and some honey to sweeten it a little. Mmm mmm. Good stuff.
• The track season ended this week. It was a good season. Definitely better than last year. We had some really good athletes, and grades didn't even take too many away. We did lose a couple to behavior problems at school, some moved, and others just quit, but we did end the season with 9 kids as opposed the the 4 for last year. The conference meet was this week, and we had a couple athletes place in the finals (we would have had another, but he didn't come to school the day of the meet, so he couldn't compete). That was great for them. They did an awesome job. I am really proud of the kids. 
• I've got a 5k next Saturday at the zoo. Ever since the first time we went to the zoo, I thought it would be the perfect course for a race, so I am really excited to run this race. Just gotta get myself registered. Running has been going really well. My knee is behaving, so that's definitely good. I'm taking it really easy, and kind of enjoying starting over again. I've really gotten out of shape, and each run is tough, but I still look forward to each run. 

Our new arrival

Wednesday after work, I was at the middle school getting ready for our 2nd track meet. I was getting out some equipment when my wife called: "Umm, I think my water just broke." So I said, " I guess I'm not going to the meet then." I got my other coach all set and the kids on the bus, and then headed straight home. This was about 4:00. I got home as fast as I could, but she hadn't starting having any contractions yet. But, later while we were eating dinner, they started coming at pretty regular intervals and the intensity was increasing. This was about 6:30. Labor progressed pretty quickly, bet everything went very smoothly, and my son was born at 10:55 pm. An April fool's baby. 7 lbs, 8 oz, lots of dark hair. I can't wait to take him running!

I am so amazed with Lani. I can't imagine what she goes through during birth, but man is she tough! She handled it so well and did such an incredible job (completely natural, by the way. She's very in to natural birth and even has a birth blog, if you're interested, where she writes about research, news, and just about anything related to birth.).

Here are a few pics:
p.s. I heard the track meet went well, but I don't know any details. I'll get back to work sometime next week and find out.

A weekend with my girls

It's been a busy weekend (well, a busy week altogether, but we've had a lot of fun this weekend). I've been volunteering at the NBA Jam Session--games and activities for fans as part All-Star weekend. For volunteering, they gave me tickets to the festivities. Last night, I brought my girls out for a little fun. We played at the Kids Zone, shot the sling shot, caught a glimpse of Gary Payton, and even got a picture with one of my basketball heroes, Deron Williams. So what if he was just a life-sized cutout.

Today, since Lani was at a meeting/training all day today (she's starting down the path to her dream of becoming a doula), I took the girls to the park to play at the playground, and to participate in the Freakishly Flexible 5K. It's a good thing this "5K" is so flexible because, due to my knee, I wasn't able to run it. We walked the 1.1 miles around the lake in 17:28. It was a beautiful day for a walk. Would have been an even better day to run, but I won't go into that. We had a fun time playing in the park, feeding the ducks, swinging, sliding, digging, and climbing. 

Trim up the tree

Every year, Lani and I have exchanged Christmas ornaments. Some have been store-bought, but most have been homemade. For some reason, most of the ones Lani has given men have been related to running. We try to make our ornaments meaningful in some way. Lani always has very awesome and creative ideas. This year, she did not disappoint. Her ornament for me commemorates two running accomplishments this year. I'm not sure what they're called, but she took some little glass rock-type things, glued some magazine cut-outs to the back, and strung them together on a ribbon for an absolutely incredible finished product. One side commemorates my running the Boston Marathon, and the other side commemorates my running a 4:59.95 mile.I had yet to make Lani a running ornament, simply because she had never done much running. However, this year, Lani really got into it. She'd often get up wicked early to meet her friends for a run. Even now at 5 months pregnant, she is still running. So to commemorate her new life as a runner, I made this:I used the same idea with the glass rock thingys, and used paper clips to sculpt a little pregnant runner (that's a picture of Lani's face and a cartoon picture of a fetus behind the glass). I'm pretty proud of my creation.

On a different Christmas/running note, we recently went to a Christmas party where Santa was on hand, and my oldest asked for--get this--running shoes! How cool is that?!

My first race report

Posted by Ax junior.

This morning, I participated in my first race. Mommy ran the Tempe Iron Girl 5k (an all women's race), but she sneaked me in. And as far as I could tell, I was the only runner in the "in utero" division. That's gotta be pretty good for a 1st place in my first ever race! It's really no surprise though, considering how much I've been working out. Mom says it feels like I'm kicking her all day long. Little does she know that I'm just getting ready to leave my parents in the dust when I get out.

The race took place at the Tempe Town Lake. Mommy and I cruised along both sides of the lake and across a couple bridges and enjoyed a beautiful sunrise. Daddy and my big sisters waited for us at the finish and cheered us on down the final stretch.

After we finished, my sisters and I were given some annoying little ducks from the race sponsor. All day long I've been hearing "Aflac, Aflac, Aflac!" Hopefully they won't be working anymore by the time I get out of here, if they don't get "lost" before then.

I'm looking forward to my next race with mom. Maybe something with a little less pink.

An unexpected running partner

Happy Thanksgiving!!

It's definitely not easy to go without running when you have an injury. The knee has been feeling OK, so I was tempted to give it a try this week. Lani and the girls have been out of town :-(, so Boston (our little dog) has been home alone while I go to work. I was feeling sorry for him, so I decided to take him for a long walk just to get him outside. I really needed some fresh air too, and a little bit of exercise. So, out we went. We had only made it around the corner when Boston started trotting along, pulling on the leash. What's a guy to do, especially when he is looking for an excuse to run? Up the road, and down the bike path we went. He was really moving along. Then I got to thinking, "Dude, Boston, you're just a little Shih Tsu. You weren't made for running distances." So, I slowed him down to a walk. Not much longer after that, he wanted to go some more. Who am I to stop a puppy from having a little fun after being so alone all day long? We ended up jogging/walking about a mile and a half. It was great! It felt so good to be moving again. The knee held up just fine, but it still doesn't feel quite right.

The next day, we did it again, and we actually ran most of the way. This time, I noticed my knee a bit more. I've come to the conclusion that it is not my ITB. Feeling around, I was finally able to pinpoint the location of discomfort. Up until now, it has just been general discomfort on the outside of my right knee. It is most sensitive right on the top of the head of my fibula. What could have caused that? The only thing I can think of is over training. I'm kind of wondering if it is a stress fracture, but a stress fracture on the fibula is very rare as it is not really a weight bearing bone. It might also have something to do with my lateral collateral ligament, which connects to the fibula, but damage to this ligament is usually caused by something hitting the inside of the knee, pushing it outward. I'm pretty sure nothing like that happened. So, I'm don't really know what's going on. Any ideas? I should probably go have it checked out, huh?

With Lani out of town, I didn't have to worry about feeling guilty about leaving her home this morning getting Thanksgiving dinner ready (don't worry, I've got a couple brothers and a sister-in-law coming over for dinner, so it won't just be me and Boston). I decided to volunteer at another local race. This was the Thanksgiving Day Classic, a 5k and a 10 mile run. It was raining pretty hard last night, and it was still raining when I got up this morning, so I was a little worried for the runners. But just in time for the start, it had started clearing up and the sun began to peak through the clouds. They had me working the registration table again. I'm getting quite a lot of experience there. I think I'd really like to work a water station sometime. Maybe another time.

Anyways, I hope you all have a nice Thanksgiving!

Boy, oh boy!

You may remember this post from a couple months ago. Yesterday, we got this:Looks like our new little runner will be competing in the men's division, and we are stoked! I'm no longer going to be the only male in the house. Boys are a little scarce on my side of the family. In fact, until this last summer when two boys were born, my parents only had one grandson out of the then 11 grandkids. We are all thrilled. I can't wait to get him in some running shoes and give him his very own headband. It's going to be so much fun seeing him run around with his big sisters.

YMCA Half Marathon & 5K (Volunteer) Report

I've never written a volunteer report before. This was my first time volunteering for a race. I've wanted to do one for a long time, but never got around to doing it. So, I was excited to have this opportunity, even though I had to get up super early. I was assigned to the race-day registration table. It was kinda fun to be on the other side of the table. I got to meet a lot of people, including fellow RBF, Pat. We didn't have much opportunity to talk because there were a lot of people registering, but he seemed like a real nice guy. After he walked away, I thought, "I should have gotten a picture with him." Maybe next time.

When it was time for the half marathon to begin, I happened to be bringing some supplies over and got to see the unique start. Wyatt Earp, complete with shotgun started the runners. With a BANG, they were off. It was pretty cool to see all those runners fly by! Something I'd never experienced before. I've always been one of those runners.

My next assignment was to keep the 5K runners in order as they crossed the finish line. I really enjoyed seeing the runners cross the finish and be the first to congratulate them. This didn't last too long as I was given a new assignment of running the results over to the results board. After my first run over, I was given the new assignment of official timer. And I spent the rest of my time clicking a button when the participants finished. That doesn't sound too exciting, but I really had a good time seeing everyone as they reached the finish. It was interesting to observe them. Some were completely exhausted, some were as thrilled as can be, some were relieved it was over. There were families running together. I think the youngest finisher (not in a stroller) was 5 years old. And I was surprised to see how many people were running with their dogs! I guess the "Family 5K" includes pets.

Volunteering was so much fun! There really is a lot going on that we don't really see as runners. The amount of work it takes to organize, set up, direct, take down, etc. etc. is incredible. I really respect the race directors and everyone behind the scenes for doing what they do for runners. Race day must be a crazy day for them. This was a great experience, and I can't wait for another opportunity to volunteer again. I highly recommend it!

Ode to my headband

Last night, I was about ready to file a missing person's report. Well, I suppose it would have been more of a missing headband's blogpost. You see, I had been neglecting my headband and one day about a week ago, it just disappeared. I had let it go for sometime without getting it in the washer. I should have realized something was amiss when it ceased to soak up my sweat as efficiently as it used to. I thought everything would be ok when I thoughtlessly tossed it in the hamper. A few days later, I did the laundry, and was excited to pull it out of the dryer on the morning of my run. Quickly shuffling through the clothes, I didn't come across it. No problem. I could manage the run without it. Later on, when I was folding the laundry, I still didn't see it. That's when I started to worry. Not too much though, it couldn't be too far. There were still some clothes in the hamper. Maybe it fell a little lower than I thought. It'll turn up in the next wash. Well, yesterday was the next wash, and it still wasn't there! Where could it be? It couldn't just vanish! Could it? Perhaps there was some foul play? I've had that headband since my junior year in high school. We've been through a lot together...

(Commence sentimental music and black and white flashback sequence.)

I bought you for something like 99 cents plus tax at Fred Meyer. It was mostly out of fun with some of the other guys on the cross country team. Little did I know that I'd be the only one to continue wearing one throughout that season and seasons to come.

You came with me on my mission to Germany, although I wasn't able to get much running in.

You were right there with me when I started running again and entered my first race since high school.

You helped me get through my first marathon and stuck with me as I walked the last 8 miles with a knee injury.

You supported me as I came within 2 minutes of qualifying for Boston in my next marathon.

You eventually accompanied me through the streets from Hopkinton to Boston.

You kept me dry during my summer of training for my sub-5 minute mile and were with me on that memorable day.

You have made many a training run more enjoyable with your many absorbent fibers.

(Jump back across time to last night.)

Oh, headband, how I missed you this last week or two. Something had to be done. So last night, I went on a desperate hunt. I looked through the laundry room, under the washer and dryer, in the hamper again, through my daughters' laundry, and even in their sock drawers. With what hope I had left, I went back to my closet and looked on the floor. No luck. Then, without even realizing what I was doing, I was looking behind the hamper, and what to my wandering eyes should appear, my beautiful, trusty old headband... in desperate need of a wash.

So, into the wash with my kids' socks, underwear and tees it went. And this morning, we were once again reunited. Oh happy day!

Updates

Anybody have any idea what to do about this? The band had been coming loose for a while now, but this week that side came off completely. It was really annoying today on my long run taking my splits. Now, for many runners, this would be the perfect excuse to upgrade to a Garmin. As much as I'd like to do that, I really can't afford it. Is there some kind of adhesive that would work to hold it together? Is it worth it? Any help is much appreciated.

Marathon training is going really well. I've been really surprised at how much endurance I've had. I was really worried after my mile training that it would take a long time to work up my miles, let alone running them at a good pace. I've been following the FIRST plan (except for the long run). My interval and tempo runs have been awesome. I haven't had a problem running the prescribed paces. I've actually been able to keep my times well under that pace on all my runs. The long run is a different story. The program started out with a 13 mile long run. The next week had a 15 mile run, and today was supposed to be a 17 miler. That's still a little to much for me, but I am getting there. Last Saturday, I planned to do an 8 mile run at about an 8 minute pace. I ended up doing 9 with a 7:26 average pace, and still feeling like I could do more. Today I planned for 10, with the option of doing 11 (or maybe even 12). This run was a lot harder than last week's. I could tell within the first half mile that it was going to be tough. I still managed to do 11 at a 7:57 pace, but it definitely took more out of me than I was expecting. Overall though, I'm very pleased with my training so far.

Other Updates:
The cross country season is about half over. The middle schoolers I am coaching have made tons of progress. It has been fun to see the improvements. I've got 18 kids this year. That is a huge team compared to the 3 I had last year. We did, however, just have progress reports which made about half the team ineligible with poor grades. Fortunately, they will only miss one meet before they are allowed to come back (if they've gotten their grades up). So, that's good news.

I now have a 5 year old! My oldest daughter had a birthday this week. She's very excited to be five. We had a birthday party for her today. You gotta love the excitement of little children.

So it begins

After achieving my goal of the running a sub-5 minute mile, several people have asked what I'll be doing next. Should I keep trying to get faster? Could I do 4:50? I don't know. I'd really like to try, but I think that will wait till next summer. I have really been looking forward to training for another marathon. So that's what I've been up to this week. I'm going to follow the FIRST plan and aim to qualify for Boston again. The Running from an Angel Marathon is in 16 weeks (as of last Monday), so this week was week 1. This is how it went:

Tuesday - On the schedule was 3x1 mile repeats at 6:01 pace with 1 minute recovery. Bring it on! I just trained for and ran a 5 minute mile. Three at a 6 minute pace should be cake. First mile... Oops, wrong turn (I was running through the neighborhood). It only took me 3:47, but that turned out to be a 5:30 pace. See, what did I tell ya? Mile two... One minute sure is short! No problem though. Managed to do a full mile this time in 6:02. Whoa, that was harder than I thought. Mile three... That minute seemed even shorter, and the mile felt even longer. I was only able to run a 6:12. How 'bout a nice recovery meal of humble pie?

Thursday - 2 miles easy, 2 tempo miles at 6:34 pace, 2 miles easy. If this run would have been before Tuesday's run, I'd probably have done those easy miles around 7 minutes each, but as I now have a better idea of how different marathon training is compared to mile training, I was sure to do those easy miles really easy. That turned out to be 8:20 for the first two. I was feeling pretty good when the tempo miles started, but knew it was going to be tough. The first mile was just a few seconds slow, but I made up for that on the second and finished 13 seconds ahead of schedule. Then, the last two miles were again at an easy pace.

Saturday - 13 mile long run. No way was that going to happen. Come on, I'm just coming off of a summer of training for 1 mile. I thought I'd be able to do 7, maybe 8 at an easy pace. But, life happens, and I skipped the first long run of the training plan. Lani and I decided that we wanted to get out of the heat of Phoenix for a day, so we packed up the kids and dog and headed up to Flagstaff with my bro and his wife. We spent the day hiking around (most of the time with my youngest on my back). We had a great time in the 73 degree weather at Buffalo Park and the Arizona Snow Bowl. At the end of the day, I was very glad I didn't do that long run before we left. All that hiking with an almost 3-year-old left me pretty worn out and sore. Hopefully, I'll get my long run in this weekend. Here are some pics of our adventure.

Mile Attempt #12 slash Race report slash Virtual Mile Challenge

If you haven't noticed already, the countdown to my 1 Mile Race is complete. Lani, the girls, and I drove down to Tucson, the land of Lani's nativity, yesterday afternoon. It was a nice trip. The weather was great (about 15 degrees cooler than Phoenix), and there were beautiful mountains which made us a little homesick for Utah Valley. We got to see the neighborhood and house where Lani spent the first couple years of her life, but the purpose of the trip was the race. I was feeling really good, despite the fact that I helped with a church service project that morning clearing out tons of weeds for a community garden, and then trimming the tree in our own front yard. I was also feeling very confident and rested after an easy week.

We got to the track around 5:30, got registered, changed into my running attire, and started watching the other age group races unfold as I waited for my heat. The youngest group was first, and then they continued from the oldest down to the high school age kids. There were some pretty impressive runners out there. It was fun to watch. As the time passed, and my race grew closer, I started running some laps to warm up and check out my competition. Although my real competition was the clock.

By the time my race was to begin, it had gotten pretty dark. The stadium lights were on, producing a sort of erie green glow from the football field, and leaving the world outside the track in darkness. We were called to the line, and the race began. I jumped right out to the front, and by about 200m I couldn't hear the footsteps behind me. I was hoping there would be someone sticking with me to help push the pace. As I completed the first lap, I saw Lani and the girls on the infield cheering me on, and heard the the time of 1:15 called out. Right on schedule, I thought. Things were looking good. It was during the second lap that I noticed my mouth was really dry. I thought I had been drinking plenty of water throughout the day, but maybe I needed more. I didn't feel like I was slowing down much though. But when I finished lap 2, I was at 2:37. If I was going to beat 5 minutes, I'd need to pick things up a bit. I still wasn't hearing any footsteps behind me, but I could hear people cheering for other people, so I knew they weren't far behind. Lap 3 was another relatively slow one. I crossed the line at about 4:02 realizing that the 5 minute mile was out of reach. I didn't slow down though. But as I turned onto the back straightaway, my lead was diminishing, and I was passed. He seemed to be flying. I turned on the juice, determined not to let him blow me away. With about 150m to go, I was sprinting all out. My fastest finish ever. But it wasn't enough. I crossed the finish line with a time of 5:16. I couldn't believe it. I thought for sure I had been faster than that. I felt like I was definitely going fast enough to at least PR. But, alas. It was not to be. Don't get me wrong, second place is still good, and I had a great time doing it. I was just expecting a little more from myself.

Maybe I had taken too much rest during the week. Maybe I wasn't properly fueled since I'm not accustomed to running in the evening. Maybe it was my altruistic service and yard work out in the sun and heat earlier in the day. Maybe it was that extra 9 meters they added to make it an accurate mile. Who knows? The fact is, I didn't make it, and there will have to be at least one more mile attempt before I start my winter marathon training.

This is where I need your help. I'm going to borrow Nancy's virtual race director's cap (hope you don't mind, Nancy!) and plan a 1 Mile Virtual Race for September 6th, the weekend before I start my marathon program. I suppose you could do "1 on the 1st." That would be Labor Day. Any time that week is cool with me. I know it's pretty short notice, but that 5:16 under my "personal record" heading is a little depressing. I'd love to challenge all of you to a virtual mile to help push me under that 5 minute barrier. So many of you have been a huge support for me and a wonderful source of encouragement. Wouldn't it be awesome to experience it together?! I know I can do it, and I'd love for you to be a part of it. Let me know what you think, and spread the word. I'll try to get a nifty logo made up in the next day or so for you to post on your blogs. Thanks again for your support. I look forward to breaking that barrier with you!

Stay tuned for attempt #13.

Hey, it's good to be back home again

Just wanted to let everyone know that I'm still alive. We returned home from our long vacation to Utah last Saturday night. We had a great time visiting with family. Here are some of the highlights:

Snow on the drive up.

The Art City Days 5k with Lani.

Prepping the deck for outdoor carpet with my father-in-law.

Beautiful views if the LDS Timpanogos Temple from my brother-in-law's house. Click here for more info about LDS temples.

Roasting s'mores. A frequent occurrence at my in-laws'.

Doggy family reunions. (Left to right: Fenway, Boston's brother; Jack, his dad; Boston, himself; Jill, his mama; and Chip, his other brother)

The Art City Days Carnival.

The Provo River Trail 10 mile race.

Visiting my sister and niece in Salt Lake.

The family's alternative cooking experiment.

Family reunion at Bear Lake.

Visiting my parents in Idaho.

And fireworks, of course.

I had some great runs and races while there. I've reported on most of them already, but I still have a race report for the Fourth of July to write. That will be coming shortly. My last three runs have been in three different states, and the previous one was a long run with my brother-in-law stretching across the Idaho-Utah border. I feel well traveled but am very glad to be home.

Preview of posts to come:
-Race report for the Provo Freedom Festival 10k
-Mile attempt #7

Hopefully I'll be able to get those up very soon.